Two Friends English Chocolate

Got tired of NorthWoods as an all day smoke and after a few months of searching I found a replacement. Glad I picked up picked up a tin of this wonderful stuff.

Tin note is very latakia, with subtle hints of cocoa or maybe burnt coffee with the familiar hay-ish sweet smell of virginias... Nice broad cut flakes broken into wide ribbons that pack easily. Lighting is a bit touch and go, requiring a very good first charr. Keeping this stuff lit is effortless. Smokes best in a cobb or wide bowled briar.

The taste is incredible! Sweet quality VA is the main player here, so don't expect a "lat BomB" or some super complex smoke. The latakia is there in a perfect amount; there is very little. Latakia is more of a condiment here and for that it plays its role perfectly. The casing is very modest, peeking through if you look for it. The room note is warm, chocolaty, and just a touch of sweet smokyness. Reminds me of sitting next to a campfire while drinking hot cocoa.

English Aro hybrids don't get the attention they deserve. One would think that English smokers would actually enjoy something like this once in a while instead of claiming it to be the work of a heretic or pointing their noses into the air and passing it by without consideration.

As a primarily VA smoker, this one really hits the spot for me and has earned a permanent place in my rotation. If I had to choose one blend to smoke for a month this would be it.

I recently received my first order of this tobacco which was tinned on 12-27-10. I am smoking it in a Stanwell Vario - a featherweight poker. The tin aroma was decidedly Latakia, but not over the top as some Latakia blends go. I detected the faintest whiff of chocolate. It also smelled a bit alcoholic - like rum laden chocolate bobs, and very delicious. It came as a well rubbed out broken flake of medium brown to light tan. It filled and lit with ease and required only the occasional relight. As I am not a big fan of Latakia, I was very pleased that its dominant presence in the tin note was very well tamed by the sweet tasting Virginia. Although I wouldn't classify this an an aromatic in the traditional sense, I was able to taste the chocolate - very subtle and to my liking. English Chocolate smoked smooth, dry, and cool. Only with a faster puffing cadence could I detect the ability of this to smoke hot if pushed.

All in all, a very well put together tobacco. I believe this would satisfy pipe smokers across the board. It certainly would be a good blend for newbies to accustom their taste buds to Latakia. I've smoked other Latakia blends before - many of them, actually - and I would have to say that when I want a Latakia blend to smoke, English Chocolate fits the bill nicely for me.

This is a great blend, reminescent of Bob's Chocolate Flake. I dried it out an hour before lighting, but it appears to be ready to smoke from the tin. Lots of Latakia here to my taste, which is not a bad thing. The chocolate is not as evident in the smoke as it is from the tin note; but it is present. Nicotine was satisfying; and it burnt cool with not a gurgle at all. I smoked it in an old Meer lined billiard. I will be getting more to sock away. Recommended.

This is really really. Really good stuff. Given two years to age and it’s SUBLIME. the perfect dessert tobacco. Like a slice of dark chocolate raspberry cake.

Don’t worry about the Latakia if you’re not a fan. This is quite possibly the best aromatic in the market for English smokers like myself. But even for no English lovers it’s a wonderfully sweet tobacco (not in an unnatural or cloying way). Never had anything else like it. Get two tins. One to open one to age.

The tin note is very pleasant: smoky and chocolate, and a bit fruity. The cut is a nice broken flake, long chunks that fold up nicely when packing. No rubbing out necessary. The cold taste has chocolate and a fruity note (raspberry or blackberry).

When smoking, at first it reminded me of chocolate milk. The kind that gets made in large pots at big winter events. Creamy, milky chocolate. As the bowl progresses, this taste dissipates a bit, as the sweetness from the Virginia really kicks in. At that point you get a very consistent, full bodied sweet smoke.

The Latakia is used sparingly, mostly condimental. However, if you're like me and you want that Latakia smoky goodness, I recommend retrohaling -- on the retrohale, the spicyness and smoky leather and heather comes through a bit more strongly, working very well with the taste of the tobacco.

The tobacco needed a fair number of relights (that's my experience with flakes, broken or not), but burned to the bottom of the bowl, leaving no noticeable moisture at the bottom, even though I gave it no drying time.

To me this is a great tobacco to smoke while reading. The flavor is consistent and there aren't too many surprises (good or bad) that draw your attention. Sitting in an easy chair with a good book, a pipe, and enjoying a pleasant winter (or fall, or spring, or just a slightly colder summer) evening.

I will very likely buy this again.

Lemony hay like Virginia with enough Latakia to provide a smoky campfire hit you nose and pallet from the get go here. An additional treat of light cocoa and semi sweet chocolate come into play soon after the match. Very well behaved in the bowl throughout the process. Flavor profile true from start to end. No goopy gunk or excess moisture in this one. If you like Latakia and you like chocolate then you need to try this blend. Very well done, gentlemen. One of my late night go to blends. Plan to keep this one around for a time to come. Aromatic of a different breed, indeed!

High quality tobacco with a high quality flavoring to create an outstanding blend from an outstanding manufacturer. The Virginias are sweet, the flavoring is a noticeable light chocolate. There is some Latakia in this blend but very, very little, just to add a little extra something.

I would consider this an aromatic, and a high quality one. The topping isn't used to mask inferior quality leaf.

Lights easy, burns cool, does not bite, leaves a pleasant room note. One of the best aromatics out there.

This is a very good unique smoke. My tobacconist recommended it when I asked for something more full and flavorful. Tobacco is definetly high quality. Packs well, no tongue bite. Definetly get alot of taste (Virginia then Latakia) with just a hint of cocoa (think baking cocoa powder). Not an ever day smoke for me, but definetly will fit the bill when I am looking to change pace. Wife apprecited the aroma. Three years later and other chocoloate blends smoked, I am now highly recommending this. No others have come close. If I feel for a chocolate/Latakia blend, this is the only one to turn to.

great aroma from the tin. you can smell the chocolate right from the start. taste just like it smells. gets stronger as you smoke.